Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own them.
A/N: Well, here it is – the final chapter. To everyone who reviewed – thank you so much, you make writing this even more fun. And your thoughts/ comments are always interesting to read. ;) WingFetish beta'd, and thanks to my friend Moony for helping as well. Hope you like the ending, and happy reading!
Holy crap he's good at that, was the first coherent thought that came to her mind. She realized his thumb was still running the length of her cheek, but found that it bothered her much less than it really should have. She tried to speak, but this time, Danny was the one who cut her off.
"Look, Lindsay I… I want this. And I'm gonna start by being honest," he said, looking at her with nothing but truth and adoration in his gaze. "I have this thing for you, if you couldn't tell." She smiled a little, thinking oh, I can tell, Danny. Trust me. "And I have, for awhile now. But, I lied when I was talking to you at the PD a few months ago."
At this, she frowned. She tried to figure out exactly what he meant before he spoke again.
"I said that I was just looking for a few laughs, drinks, the usual, not a relationship. And, it's just not true. The only reason I said that was because I figured it was what you wanted, and there was no way I was gonna do anything to drive you away when we were so close. Thing is, you're in my mind all the time, and I don't think I want anything but a relationship with you. But I don't wanna pressure you into this, I just, I need you to know that. There's nobody I want more than you, Lindsay."
She almost gave right then, but there was something else eating away at her.
"Danny I… I don't even know if I know how to do this. I haven't been in a relationship in a very long time. As in several years. And I don't know if I really remember how to do this, or if I can. I don't want to hurt you, and I don't want to get hurt either. And what happens if… this… starts to affect our jobs? Or if we do, do this and it ends badly? And Mac, what'll Mac say if I have to ask to be off a case because you're on it and we can't be around each other? Or if…"
She stopped rambling, her most obvious nervous habit, when he placed a finger over her lips. Danny smirked slightly, "I'm not even sure if we're together, and you've already got us breaking up and talking to Mac about it? C'mon Montana, give me a chance here."
An almost frightened look came into her eyes. "We're… not?" she said, his fingers slightly blocking her question.
Danny responded, "This is up to you, Linds. You know… everything, basically," and he took her hand, forcing her to look into his eyes. "I am not going to ever do anything to hurt you, I can promise you that. I can't promise that you'll never get mad at me, or that I won't act like an idiot sometimes, cause I might not be as good at keeping my mouth shut as you think I would be. I also can't promise that sometimes, I might worry that I'll get my heart broken in this, cause I've got a lot of stock in us already. There's no way this is gonna affect work, cause I'll just keep flirting with you like I usually do," he said with a wink. "And God knows if they manage to find out, and they will eventually, Stella and Flack will not stop making fun of us. But it doesn't matter. None of it does, because this – you and me – I'm thinking it's worth it. I'm thinking it's worth anything, and I'm hoping that you might agree."
Here it was, laid out on the table before her, everything she had been wanting to hear from Danny for months. He could not possibly have made a more perfect speech to get to her, and she felt the last brick from the wall around her heart fall to the ground. She was smiling now, a small tear forming in her eye as she told him, "I'm crazy about you, Danny Messer. And I won't break your heart, I'd rather die first. I'm not going to get any less stubborn or competitive at work because we're together. And yes, they will find out, gossiping little teenagers that Stella and Flack are," Danny's smile widened at her side remark, "but not for awhile if I have anything to say about it. And it's definitely worth it; you're worth it.
"I want to be with you, Danny. And I'm not running away this time," Lindsay finished.
She hadn't actually thought his smile could get bigger, but it did. And she felt hers grow as well.
"So, we're doing this? We're…"
"Yeah, we are." They were both happy to the point of near-giddiness, glad that the night had turned out so much differently than either had expected. He grabbed her hand again, walking back to the couch, away from the cold draft of the window, to sit. Finally, was the thought in both their minds as they looked at each other again. And this time, Lindsay leaned up to kiss him.
When they finally broke apart for air. Oxygen. Breathing, breathing would be good at some point here, Danny pulled her to him, holding her against his chest. This time, when the building creaked with the huge gust of wind, Lindsay didn't even shudder. She felt safe, warm and home for the first time, and there was no way a silly storm was going to take that feeling away. In fact, she thought…
"You know Messer, it's still pretty rough out there. I'm having a thought that you might be interested in," she said.
He raised his eyebrow. "Oh really? And what might that be, Miss Monroe?"
She giggled, good GOD, am I 16 again? Get a grip, Lindsay… Oh screw it, she thought, simply glad that the man of her dreams was currently holding her. "Well, this 'little' snowstorm doesn't seem to be getting any smaller. And, it would just be mean of me to actually throw my brand new boyfriend out into this kind of weather."
He pulled away slightly to look at her, wondering if she was about to suggest what he thought she might be.
Lindsay smiled, saying, "So, what do you think about maybe… staying here for the night?" He smirked, and she blushed, quickly remembering (despite the best efforts of her subconscious) to add, "But not… like… that. I don't…"
"I know. Me neither. We're not rushing into anything here, Montana. But, this couch seems pretty damn comfortable, if you ask me. So, I'd love to stay." Danny looked as though he really would like nothing better, and she felt another rush of happiness. And then another few minutes of being unable to breathe quite right.
She laughed a little as they ended their kiss, and Danny looked down at her, saying, "What? Not good enough for you, Monroe? Cause I can probably do better, you know."
Lindsay looked at him, brown into blue, letting him know exactly what she was thinking. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately around him.
"Oh it's not that. And I don't actually think it's possible for you to be better," she said with a wink. "I was just thinking that this is the most unexpected, best… snowstorm I've ever seen."
Danny laughed too, holding her close again. As she leaned back into his arms, Lindsay thought this is just so… perfect.